New to Bloomsburg

I just moved to Bloomsburg after 30+ years in the PacNW and am looking for some riding close to town. I don't have a car so trailheads near town, within 5 miles, would be great. Also, easier rides would be appreciated too, so I can take my wife out when she's not grading papers.

Any tips or guides would be great and detailed instructions would be best since this whole place is new to me.

Bloom is pretty dry of trails within the 5-mile mark, but if you find anything let me know. My in-laws are from up there and Im always looking for a way out of the house! I usually end up going to Danville (Geisinger) trails or to Natalie/Roaring Creek. Both are about a 20 minute drive from Bloom, though.

Starting at the Town Park, take River Road (Ft. McClure Boulevard) to the red covered bridge>cross covered bridge and turn right>turn left at Route 42 and follow to Catawissa>cross bridge and pass through Catawissa, staying on the main street until you cross a small bridge over a creek by an ice cream parlor>take hard left here and follow Mountain Road to Mainville; drop off the mountain into Mainville at Arnold's Country Store; turn left to return to Bloomsburg, or turn right and take on Fulmill Hill and Mifflin X.

This is an EPIC ride -- mostly low-traffic backroads. I grew up in Bloomsburg, have lived in all four corners of the state and the middle, and this is my favorite ride by far. Fulmill Hill and Mifflix X (a fire road up the side of a 1600 foot mountain) offer a great challenge, as does the hill from Mainville back into Bloomsburg. Enjoy!

Your options are Geisenger trails(Tour de Tikes) Catawissa, Mainville, Roaring Creek would all be close.

Try a MTBR search for each!

Lot's of threads on all of these with plenty of info

Welcome to Bloom and Pa

If ya feel adventurous head north a bit to Moon Lake park (Hunlock's Creek Pa)

What is going on in Catawissa? I know of the other areas you mentioned, but I don't know anything about trails in Catawissa...

To the OP: Geisinger has a lot of miles of trails with an OK amount of variety-I highly recommend it. Mainville and Roaring creek can be fun, too, but mainville is a death-march climb with a cool descent as a reward and Roaring Creek has some pretty techy spots and can be overwhelming if you don't know what you are getting yourself into. There is also some good riding in Mt Top, but I am not very familiar with it yet. Closest areas are Geisinger and Mainville-8 miles or so from town. Roaring Creek and Mt Top are a good half-hour or so by car.

If you want a really easy "wife ride", go down to Railroad St and go towards Fernville-there is a nice wide, flat walking/biking path that follows an old railroad grade that follows Fishing Creek for about a mile or 2-it goes a lot further, actually, but you have to cross private property that is now posted and the rest of the old RR bed is not maintained like the other part.

Welcome to Bloomsburg.

You better just go ahead and drop that seatpost down to the reflector... the trail gets pretty rough down there.

Thanks for the input. I'll give a shot to scouting them out on the road bike and see how far they really are. I just hate riding too much on the road with my off-road tires as they have a tendency to just melt away. We don't plan on buying a car here for quite a while, so if anybody is looking for a ride partner and a gas chip drop me a PM.

Behind Bloom hospital

There is some decent singletrack right behind the Bloomsburg hospital. BMX kids use it alot but once you learn it you could construct a nice xc loop out of what is there. You could also ride some of the cross country running course on upper campus of the university.

Here is a map for the race course they use for the Eco-Quest triathalon. The bike portion is 5 miles of single track and double track.

Ahhhh Bloomsburg. Went to college there and started mountain biking there! My sophomore year, 1990, I walk into a bike shop right in town and there she was, a brand new Schwinn Moab 26" wheeled machine. She was pretty, and I was hooked. 21 gears, no suspension, foam grips, and she was all mine. I mostly rode around campus but would take her out behind upper campus, down the hill towards I-80 and then hooked around and found some short sections of single track. Not much but enough to hook me for life.

After graduation I move home to Philly and my 3 older brothers are like, what the hell is that bike? Two weeks later, we are all on bikes riding in the Wissahickon Valley Park. Now I live ¼ mile from the Wiss.

Anyway, Bloomsburg is beautiful and you are in a great area. Welcome to PA!

Make the trek...

not since spring

Originally Posted by Uncle Six Pack

Have you been out there lately? There was a nasty storm earlier this summer that really messed things up.

I haven't been up there since Spring. I know some friends who have been riding there recently and haven't mentioned anything. I know there were two college students doing some work up there last year, maybe them or some QUEST members cleaned it up? Not sure?

I haven't been up there since Spring. I know some friends who have been riding there recently and haven't mentioned anything. I know there were two college students doing some work up there last year, maybe them or some QUEST members cleaned it up? Not sure?

Yeah, I went over the weekend and things are a lot better. Still lots of trees down, but most of the trails have been cleared. When that storm first went through, the place looked like a bomb went off.

You better just go ahead and drop that seatpost down to the reflector... the trail gets pretty rough down there.